Y401/N304/W405 Muslims in Western Politics

Undergrad courses pages:

• Y102/N122 International Political Controversies

• Y107 Introduction to Comparative Politics

• Y200/N222 The Contemporary Middle East in World Politics

• Y401/N304/W405 Muslims in Western Politics

• Y490/N305 Conflict, Conflict Resolution & State Building

Doctoral courses pages:

• Y657/N695: Researching Civil War

• Y657/N695: Muslims in Western Politics

• Y657/N695: Researching the Politics of Muslim Countries

Dear Y401/N305/W405 student:

This webpage provides you with an updated syllabus, course readings and my PowerPoint slides.  I will update it throughout the semester.  Feel welcome to email me your thoughts and suggestions.

Abdulkader Sinno

Office hours: Tuesdays 11-1 pm, WH 323.

Downloadable readings: By clicking on this link to the readings, you agree to abide by all copyrights and fair usage rules.

Syllabus & handouts

• Latest syllabus for Y401/N305/W405
• Handout 1: Guide for Mosque Visit Report
• Handout 2: Guide for Term Paper (Option 1)
• Handout 3: Guide for Book Reviews (Option 2)

Some resources

•  Learning about the religion of Islam: Islamicity
•  Some US Muslim organizations: CAIR, AMA and MPAC.
• A large bibliography on Western Muslims and Islam

News sources and mailing lists on Western Muslims

• Euro-Islam.info

• Mailing list of Islam in Europe Blog   

• Islamopedia

• Mailing list of CAIR

News sources-general

• New York Times

• The Independent (English, free)

• Al Jazeera (English, free)

Writing resources

• consider using the great resources at IU's Writing Tutorial Services to develop your essay/paper writing skills.

• Writing pamphlets from WTS

• A wonderful writing guide for 300- and 400-level papers (designed for history majors but works for everyone)

• How to cite sources

• Access the entire Chicago Manual of Style through IU

• Understanding plagiarism, an IU resource
• IU Libraries
• IU Library's political science resources website

   

Feel welcome to print and use the following paper writing aides:

• A thorough paper writing checklist (pdf; courtesy of Darren Schreiber, Esq.)
• A very useful 2-page guide, particularly for papers dealing with historical topics (pdf, courtesy of UCLA History Professor James Gelvin.)
• Excellent writing tips from Duncan MacRae (pdf, 5 pages) who also recommends Joseph William's Ten Lessons in Quality and Grace.
• Check out Colorado State's extensive resources for budding & experienced writers 
• Click here for an online guide for Writing Research Papers prepared by the Humanities Department of Capital Community College.
• A comprehensive resource on quotations, bibliographies & plagiarism

For those who want to invest a few dollars in a writing guide, I recommend the concise and affordable classic The Elements of Style by William Strunk & E. B. White (available online).  If you already know you want to join an M.A. or Ph.D. program then buy Kate Turabian's essential A Manual for Writers to master the complexities of formatting academic documents.  Click here for a summary of Turabian's chapters on citations.

Other resources

• Abdul Sinno's general student webpage

• Stressed out or otherwise not feeling well? It is ok...everyone goes  through this, but please seek help in getting your life back on track from CAPS or another source

• Journey into America (2009): A Muslim professor's attempt to understand American identity.
• The Mosque in Morgantown (2009): on the struggle of Muslims in a small town to define the meaning of the faith and its practice in spite of different personalities, interests and perspectives. 
• Rendition (English 2007): A movie inspired by the treatment of Maher Arrar.
• Me and the Mosque (2005): a Canadian Muslim woman's inquiry into gender practices in mosques.
• The War Within (English, 2005): A tragic story of government abuse, torture and how a man was driven towards terrorism
• My son the fanatic (English, 1999): A generational conflict in a British Muslim family.
• Monsieur Ibrahim (French, 2003): A touching story about an improbable friendship between a young Jew and an elderly Muslim man in France.  With the wonderful Omar Sharif.
• Le Gone du Chaâba (French, 1998): life for Muslim immigrants before the “banlieus”.
• Salut Cousin (French, 1997): Wise guys of the Parisian slums. 
• Lila Says (French, 2005): A love story between an Arab boy and a white girl that would make Mike Tyson cry like a teenage girl watching Titanic. Touching.
• PBS Wide Angle program titled “Young, Muslim and French”, also check the related multimedia page at http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/shows/france/index.html
• “The Road to Guantanamo (English 2006): the story of three British Muslim boys’ experience as prisoners of the US government in Guantanamo.